


Morning Light

by pictureswithboxes



Series: Her Warden [3]
Category: Dragon Age - All Media Types
Genre: F/F, fluff with like half an emotion
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-05
Updated: 2016-08-05
Packaged: 2018-07-29 10:21:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,248
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7680655
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pictureswithboxes/pseuds/pictureswithboxes
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Leliana dreaded the day Elissa would have to leave her.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Morning Light

Perhaps it was the nature of her job, or it was the vestiges of her work as a bard, but Leliana found herself growing terrified. She’d heard the phrase “all good things must come to an end” hundreds of times, and she hadn’t ever experienced anything to the contrary. Every day, Leliana would wake up and see the love of her life, and the only thing she could think about was how this bliss would be taken from her. Would Elissa be shot in the throat by an assassin, or would the cure be false and Elissa would simply go mad and leave one day, never to be seen again? 

Leliana propped herself up in bed and looked at Elissa’s sleeping face. She looked peaceful, more peaceful than Leliana had ever seen her awake. Despite the scars and the crooked nose, Leliana couldn’t help but remember Elissa from before. Before the Inquisition, before Kirkwall, hell, before battling the Archdemon, it was worth waking up before dawn just to see Elissa like this. 

Seeing Elissa look so calm, so peaceful, made Leliana’s stomach twist with anxiety. 

“I know that look.” Elissa sighed, blinking herself awake and frowning a little. Her brow was furrowed and she looked up at Leliana with bleary, tired eyes. “Who do you have to kill?”

“No one at the moment.” Leliana leaned down and kissed the tip of Elissa’s nose before putting on a slightly fake smile. “I was just thinking.”

Elissa stretched a little and sighed, giving Leliana a wary look, but choosing not to say anything. “We both know you’re lying.” She said calmly, her voice leaving no room to argue.

Leliana was quiet, looking into Elissa’s eyes with a frown on her face. She felt her eyes fill with tears at the look of complete adoration in Elissa’s eyes. 

“You know that I love you, don’t you?” Leliana murmured, rubbing at her eye with her left hand. 

“Of course I do.” Elissa sat up and cupped Leliana’s face with her calloused hand, using her thumb to rub small, gentle circles on Leliana’s cheek. “And I love you as well. I’d be grateful if you told me what’s gotten you so upset.” She glanced out the window, the sun had barely risen. “Especially so early in the morning. It’s hardly dawn.”

“It’s horribly ridiculous.” Leliana replied, taking Elissa’s hand away from her cheek and kissing her knuckles. 

Feeling Elissa’s hand in her own reminded Leliana of the hardships they’d endured. On Elissa’s right hand alone, three of her fingers had been broken, and once her pinky had almost been bitten off by a wolf, Wynne had been up all night trying to help Elissa regain most of the feeling in that finger. Now her middle finger curved a little to the left near the tip and the first knuckle of her index finger was twice its normal size. Sometimes Leliana wondered if Elissa ever felt any pain in her hands, it looked painful enough. 

“If it’s troubling you, it can hardly be ridiculous, Love.” Elissa murmured, making no move to take her hand back. 

Leliana bit her lip and turned Elissa’s hand over, gently tracing the lines on Elissa’s palm with her finger. “Have I ever told you how much I love your hands?”

“Only my fingers.” Elissa’s grin was wicked, and Leliana knew that she fell right into that one. 

Leliana sighed and looked back at Elissa’s palm, frowning at the smoother parts of her palm. Sometimes it was hard to see the effects of all the fighting they did, to know that Elissa’s hands had been burnt by something that either shot or breathed fire. Elissa understood how hard it was for her to think about what danger Leliana could possibly be in while she was gone. And while Leliana liked to tease her, times like these helped her understand where Elissa was coming from. Not that she wasn’t always a little concerned.

“Please tell me what’s wrong.” Elissa sighed, taking her hand back and gently tilting Leliana’s chin up to look her in the eye. “It’s far too early for you to let me be this confused, please Love, for my sake. Tell me.”

“I’m afraid you’ll leave again.” Leliana said finally, her voice soft. “I’m afraid we’ll be forced apart and we’ll never find each other again. We’ve been so happy as of late, and-”

“All good things must come to an end.” Elissa cut Leliana off in a resigned tone, a sad smile on her face. “I won’t lie and say that the thought never crosses my mind either, we both have responsibilities. Duties to uphold.” She let out a small chuckle. “Honestly, I’m surprised we’ve survived this long.”

“You’re not very skilled at reassurances.” Leliana muttered, making Elissa laugh.

“If you’d let me finish,” Elissa said, rolling her eyes. “I would have told you that worrying about the future is making it harder to enjoy the present. That while it’s inevitable that we’ll go our separate ways at some point, it doesn’t mean that we’ll be apart for long. That one day, one of us will die, and it will hurt, but when that happens, you only have times like these to look back on and the worry that you’re feeling right now may sour the memories.” Elissa leaned forward and kissed Leliana gently. Her lips were still chapped, but Leliana couldn’t bring herself to care. 

Elissa’s words did assuage Leliana’s fears, if only for a moment. Leliana sighed and looked at Elissa, the way she nursed her bottom lip between her teeth, the slight furrow of her brow, the way her eyes shined with worry. A small smile formed on Leliana’s face as she took in the sight before her, she never wanted to forget that face. 

“I love you.” Leliana sighed, watching as Elissa’s face lit up. “And I... will try not to worry so much. While you’re with me, that is.”

Elissa smiled and climbed off the bed. “Good.” She said, stretching a little. “What’re your plans for today?” 

Leliana watched as Elissa got ready for the day. The sunlight streamed in through the window, illuminating Elissa’s body, she looked like a work of art. Her scars shined a little in the light, moving as her muscles stretched. If Elissa noticed that she had an audience, she didn’t show it. Or rather, she tried not to show it, but the small smile she wore and the twinkle in her eyes tipped Leliana off. 

“I have some things that need attending to.” Leliana replied as Elissa put on her tunic. 

Elissa hummed, not asking for details. They both understood the need for discretion when it came to their professions, knowing when it was appropriate to ask for specifics. Leliana was grateful that Elissa was so understanding, she had many more secrets than Elissa had. 

“Enjoy your day then.” Elissa said finally, putting on her boots and grabbing her quilted shirt that went under her chainmail. “You should get ready as well.”

“I’d rather watch you.” Leliana said with a smile. 

Elissa flexed her muscles and winked at Leliana before putting on her shirt and chainmail. “There isn’t much to watch now.” 

“It’s not my fault that you’re so beautiful.” Leliana said. 

Elissa’s lips quirked up as she put on her gloves. “I should say the same about you.” She walked over to the bed and quickly kissed Leliana. “Have a nice day.”

* * *

 

The day was more than half over when Leliana heard Elissa’s heavy footfalls entering the rookery. Her brow furrowed at the hesitant way Elissa approached her, Leliana frowned and braced herself for bad news. She didn’t turn around, allowing Elissa the time she needed before delivering a delivering what would possibly be a devastating blow. 

Elissa’s arms wrapped around Leliana’s waist and she rested her chin on Leliana’s shoulder. Elissa kissed Leliana’s cheek and sneaked a peek at the parchment on the desk. Leliana turned a little to look at Elissa, smiling a little before kissing Elissa quickly. 

“Hello, Love.” Elissa murmured, bumping their noses together. “I have some... news.”

“You have been called away?” Leliana sighed, noting the frown on Elissa’s face.

“I’ll be back to you in less than a week’s time.” Elissa replied softly. “There are some new warden recruits that need to be put through the Joining. A senior warden has to be there for it, and I’m the closest.”

“I thought that with the cure...”

“The cure only works if they’ve gone through the Joining. And you need to go through the Joining to become a warden, the cure would be about as useful as drinking dog piss.” Elissa was quiet for a moment. “There’s no dog piss in the cure, by the way.”

“I wouldn’t put it past you Fereldens.” Leliana teased, smiling a little despite herself. “You’re sure that you’ll only be gone a week?”

“Maybe nine days, if the ritual doesn’t go as smoothly as we’d like.” Elissa said, straightening up. 

“You won’t be in any danger, will you?” Leliana asked. 

Elissa shrugged. “The junior warden is the one who’s supposed to accompany the recruits to... do a... task,” Elissa’s brow furrowed. “Unless they don’t come back, I shouldn’t have to even lift my sword once I get there.” 

“And on the journey there?”

Elissa sighed. “It’s always dangerous on the road, but I promise if a band of thieves attacks us, I’ll kill them all.”

“That’s not reassuring.”

“My apologies, love.”

“Will you be all right?”

“I could ask you the same question.”

Leliana frowned and sent Elissa a tired look. “I will be fine. I suppose that any letters I send won’t reach you.”

“I’ll be back sooner than the letters could arrive.” Elissa smiled sadly. “But that’s better, isn’t it? You won’t even have a chance to write me.” 

“When do you leave?”

“Before nightfall.”

“The bed will be cold without you.”

“My bed will be the dirt.”

Leliana laughed a little. “Is it sad that it makes me feel a bit better to know that you’ll be sleeping on the cold, hard ground?”

“It’s perfectly reasonable.” Elissa leaned down and kissed Leliana’s neck. “You know, there’s still some time before I have to leave...”

“And you want to give me a proper goodbye?” Leliana turned her head to kiss Elissa’s lips. “I suppose I could manage that.”

Elissa grinned. “Will we make it to our quarters? Or shall I just lock this door?”

* * *

 

Compared to the time they’d spent apart, one week should feel like a blink of the eye. Though apparently what Leliana should feel was completely different from the way she actually felt. They’d gone months without seeing each other, years in fact. And somehow this week was worse than all those months combined, she supposed it may have been easier in the past because they both had so much to do. They both had their duties to uphold, but now, with Elissa’s quest over, and the Inquisition having done its job, it was hard.

It was hard and it had only been six days.

“You seem to be in a mood.” Josephine said one night when Leliana was visiting her study, not taking her eyes off one of the many letters that littered her desk. “Shouldn’t your warden be returning any day now?”

“Why do you ask? Am I annoying you?” Leliana replied with a small smile. 

“Of course not, I cherish your company.” Josephine said quickly. “I only ask because you seem upset.”

“I just miss her is all.” Leliana sighed, looking out the window and willing Elissa to return. “The bed is awfully cold without her.”

“And yet the halls near your quarters are much quieter with her gone.”

“How often are you skulking around at night, Josie?”

Josephine was quiet. 

Leliana smirked at the look on Josephine’s face. 

“When is your warden supposed to be returning?”

“Tomorrow at the earliest.” Leliana replied. 

“And the sun is setting.”

“Maybe she’ll arrive late tonight.”

“Like she did when she first came?   
  


“I would certainly appreciate the parallel.”

Josephine smiled. “I’m sure she’ll return to you as soon as she can.”

* * *

 

It would be another three days before Leliana would receive a letter from Elissa, presented to her by an overtired courier whose hair was matted with dirt and blood; which he insisted that was not human. Not that it did much to sooth her anxieties, though the letter did help a bit. 

The letter been written by Elissa’s hand, but it stated that Elissa had dictated it. Leliana was hardly surprised by that, though, depending on what had transpired with the recruits, Elissa was probably very busy in the camp and didn’t have time to sit down and actually write. It said that the courier was sent two days ahead of Elissa and that barring any  _ further  _ obstacles, she’d return before Leliana knew it. The word “further” caused Leliana’s brow to furrow as she reread the letter. What had happened to delay Elissa so much?

“Ser Cousland offers her apologies, m’lady.” The courier said, offering Leliana a shallow bow. “She also told me that I should give you an apology kiss, but I suspect she was joking.”

Leliana chuckled and set the letter on her desk. “I should hope so.”

“You should know that when I left the camp, Ser Cousland was deeply sorry for the delay.”

Leliana sighed. “She shouldn’t be.”

“She said that you would say that.”

* * *

 

Just as Elissa had said, she had returned two days later. But not as Leliana had expected. There was a bandage wrapped around her head, with a dark stain where her ear was where it had bled through. Elissa’s dark eyes were tired and she had a number of bruises along the left side of her face, the same side with the bloodied part of the bandage. As Elissa entered through the main doors, Leliana noticed that she was favoring her right side, and her heart started to pound.

“Love, are you all right?” Leliana asked, making eye contact with Elissa and cupping her right cheek. “What happened?”

“To tell you would be to reveal too much of The Joining ritual to you.” Elissa sighed, offering a small smile. “But I am all right. Our healer had his hands full with the recruits, but I managed to patch myself up well enough to give him time to focus on them.”

“How many survived?” Leliana asked, watching as Elissa inhaled deeply.

“We had five and three survived.” Elissa replied. “But their names were recorded. They’re still Grey Wardens... In spirit at least.”

Leliana frowned a little. “Let me take you to our quarters and check your wounds.”

Elissa smiled that crooked smile she wore when she was tired and nodded. “Do you think you could carry me? I’m not sure if I could make it up the stairs.”

It was hard to help Elissa up the steps and into their quarters, but once she was helping Elissa unclasp her chestplate, it was all worth it. Leliana left Elissa to remove the rest of her armor to get a basin of water and some bandages, when she returned to the room she was met with a surprise. Elissa’s tunic and trousers were stained brown with blood, with two dark, almost black stains, one on her left side and the other at her shoulder. The bruises on Elissa’s face went down her neck and under her shirt, but she was still alive. That was the only thing keeping Leliana from breaking down.

“It’s not as bad as it looks.” Elissa said, which was code for ‘it was much worse earlier, please don’t be upset.’ 

“Let me see your ear.” Leliana sighed, sitting beside Elissa on the bed and slowly unwrapping the bandage on her head. 

“Don’t be upset.” Elissa pleaded as Leliana removed the bandage. 

Before she was able to reply, Leliana let out a gasp at what she saw. Elissa’s ear was shredded, looking as though a wild animal had tried to tear it right off her head. Which, was probably what had happened. The healer at the camp had obviously done their best to fix it, and was probably the only thing that kept the ear where it belonged. The cuts were mostly healed, besides the smaller ones that the healer either overlooked or hadn’t noticed. 

“What did this?” Leliana asked, frowning at the scarred ear. 

“The the junior warden and the recruits came across a few ogres and I had to assist them, but I didn’t see the shriek that appeared out of nowhere.” Elissa offered a dry laugh. “I hadn’t even noticed it until it tried to nibble my ear.” Elissa took in a deep breath. “Then I screamed and the ogre threw me off the hill and into some rocks. I managed to kill it and save those idiots that thought they’d be able to take on so many strong darkspawn at once.”

“Well if you were able to fight off darkspawn, then you must have been perfectly fine.” Leliana rolled her eyes and kissed Elissa’s lips quickly. 

“My ribs were broken as well, but the healer fixed that as well.” Elissa said, lifting her tunic and revealing dark purple bruises that went up and down Elissa’s left side. Oddly enough, the largest one resembled a map of the Free Marches. “I should have a salve for them in my pack.”

“I’ll get it.” Leliana dug through Elissa’s pack and found a tiny jar underneath her clothes. “Is this it?”

Elissa nodded and held out her hand for it, catch the look on Leliana’s face and lay back for her to apply the salve.

“He said to apply liberally.” Elissa mumbled, shivering a little when the salve touched her skin. “They should fade in another day or so.”

Leliana nodded and applied the salve as gently as she could. “You must be tired.” She murmured, watching as Elissa’s eyelids drooped. 

Elissa hummed. “D’you think we can put some of that on my face?” 

“I don’t see why not.” Leliana replied as she finished with Elissa’s ribs. With a small sigh, she leaned over and gently applied some to Elissa’s face and neck, pecking her lips before sitting up. “Does that feel better?” 

“It certainly doesn’t hurt, and anything that doesn’t hurt feels good.” Elissa smiled tiredly, pushing herself up. “Help me prepare for bed?”

Leliana nodded and smiled a little as she helped Elissa remove her tunic. She leaned forward and kissed Elissa’s bruise before unwrapping Elissa’s breasts. Normally Leliana would make a suggestive comment and try to initiate something, but right now she was more likely to hurt Elissa than satisfy her. Elissa seemed to notice Leliana’s hesitation and winked at her with a smile. 

“You’re indecent.” Leliana teased, tossing a clean shirt at Elissa and helping her out of her trousers. 

“And whose fault is that?” Elissa grinned, taking off her socks as Leliana threw a new pair of trousers at her. 

“I missed you, you know.” Leliana found herself saying instead of the well thought out jibe she’d prepared.

“Well, I’d much rather be looking at you than an ogre as well.” Elissa said, putting on her trousers and falling back on the bed. “Now get ready for bed, I’d like to get some sleep.”

“What if I wake up and you’re not here?”

“Then I’ll probably be relieving myself.”

“Don’t be crass.”


End file.
